Total Motors To Feature Drive-In Movie Tonight
(Le Mars) — Le Mars’ Hometown Christmas celebration will begin this evening with the showing of the movie “Elf” featured at Total Motors. The movie will begin at 6:30 p.m. and much like when Total Motors showcases a movie during “Ice Cream Days” a low frequency FM radio signal will be used allowing people
to remain in their cars, and be safe, and able to listen to the movie’s dialog through their car’s radio. Mitch Christoffel of Total Motors says two large digital screens will be showing tonight’s movie.
American Bank is co-sponsoring the event with Total Motors, and Christoffel says holiday goodies and treats will be offered to those people attending tonight’s movie event.
Christoffel says by remaining in your vehicle, you will have the opportunity to kickoff the Christmas holiday season with a fun event, and still remaining safe. The movie “Elf” will begin at 6:30 p.m. Christoffel suggests you arrive early.
Remember To Support Small Businesses On Saturday
(Des Moines) — Even with the pandemic, some Iowans camped out overnight so they could be the first to enjoy today’s Black Friday deals, but the head of the U.S. Small Business Administration in Iowa hopes the buying fervor will
extend into tomorrow — for Small Business Saturday. Jayne Armstrong, director of the SBA’s Iowa District Office, says local merchants have endured a very challenging year and the holiday shopping season is key to their success.
COVID-19 has forced many people to avoid shopping in person in stores and Armstrong says you can equally show support for local businesses by seeking out their websites.
One economic forecast predicts in-store sales will be down three-percent this holiday season while online sales will be up 30-percent. For those who physically shop in stores, Armstrong says to look for small business backers
who will be fanned out in Iowa’s downtowns and shopping districts.
While some small businesses were forced to close during 2020, she says it’s been a pleasant surprise to see so many new small business start-ups in Iowa succeed. Armstrong says 97-percent of the businesses in Iowa are small businesses.
Early ATM Numbers Down On Black Friday
(Undated) — A spokesman for the SHAZAM A-T-M network says the early Black Friday transactions look different in 2020 than they did in past years. He says the transactions were down a little more than 12 percent compared to the same time period last year. The amount of money involved was down nearly 29
percent. The average transaction was 53 dollars — down seven percent.
Court Order Extends COVID Restrictions Through June
(Des Moines, IA) — The latest order from the Chief Justice of the Iowa Supreme Court says the high number of COVID cases will keep normal operations from resuming in the court system until at least June 30th. The order extends the timeline on many of the rule changes previously made to deal with the
pandemic. Those orders encourage the use of video conference or telephone for non-jury trials and other court filings through the June date. It keeps in place the social distancing measures for activities conducted in the courtroom. Jury trials have been suspended until February 1st, 2021.
Derecho Takes Out Cedar Rapids Speed Cameras
(Cedar Rapids, IA) — The August 10th derecho caused millions of dollars in damage across the state — but it may’ve saved some drivers in eastern Iowa money. The city of Cedar Rapids tells K-C-R-G T-V the derecho took speed cameras along the interstate offline after they lost power when the derecho
hit. The cameras stayed off for about one month until September 4th. The city reports there were around 53-hundred speed tickets during August — compared to the monthly average of 15-thousand tickets given out each month.
